Motor vehicle theft by means of carjacking while the driver is operating a vehicle is an ever-growing problem today and one which results not only in considerable cost and dismay to a stolen vehicle's owner but oftentimes the wounding or intentional murder of the driver by the carjacker. Carjacking has become an ever present lethal threat in American society today. The purpose of the novel system is to protect the life of each occupant of a motor vehicle when threatened by an attempted carjacking. Its purpose, structure and function are different from the prior art which is directly primarily to the protection of personal property from theft.
Various devices and systems using discomfort-causing substances have been proposed, one such being disclosed, for example, in the specification relating to PCT Application No. PCT/FR85/00244 of Sep. 10, 1985. In this document, a device using an existing wind screen washer element or elements of a motor vehicle to generate sprays or showers of "chemical liquids such as ammonia, sulfuric acid, and hydrochloric acid, and dyes" is installed in a vehicle, apparently with the aim of "marking, hurting, asphyxiating" a would be thief but without regard to adapting same to defend against a carjacker. Another such vehicle theft deterrent system actuatable in response to a timer is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,958,142 issued to Sayers on Sep. 18, 1990. This system is also not adapted to defend against a carjacker.
A vehicle conduit system for selectively spraying a fluid was introduced in U.S. Pat. No. 3,259,050 issued to Grimm in 1966. An intrusion protection system wherein a tear gas gun is mechanically maintained in a normally cocked position with a electrical resistor connected at one end to a firing pin while the opposite end of the resistor is secured to a stationary surface was proposed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,656,658 issued to Iannnetti in 1972. In essence, the system is an electrically controlled tear gas discharger. In 1977 U.S. Pat. No. 4,055,277 was issued to Fegley et al for a type of fluid dispensing anti-burglary device wherein pressurized fluid such as tear gas is discharged when an unauthorized movement of an object is attempted. This anti-burglary device employs a security cable which will allow limited movement of the object but will cause release of the pressurized fluid when the security cable is severed or removed from its terminations. Fegley was also issued U.S. Pat. No. 4,068,780 in 1978 for an electrothermally activated fluid dispensing device. The device employs an electrothermal actuator strip for causing fluid discharge when an electric current flows through it.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,570,824 issued to Bolling in 1986 an electrical doorbell activated mechanism was disclosed or dispensing an aerosal spray inside a home. In contrast in 1989 U.S. Pat. No. 4,841,752 was issued to Fletcher for an array of spray nozzles selectively controlled by footpedal for operation as an anti-theft device.
In 1991 U.S. Pat. No. 5,046,449 was issued to Nelson for an outward spray apparatus for coating the front of a vehicle wherein a pump is coupled to a reservoir for pumping the liquid from the reservoir and a dispensing tube is connected from the pump for dispensing the material from the reservoir for spraying over the front of a vehicle.